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By In what are the irmaa brackets for 2023Ellebracht Sr is the grandfather of Walter Wesley Ellebracht III, who was killed in an automobile accident Jan. 20 on Highway 290 just out side Fredericksburg. Is family-oriented and loves spending time with her fianc and chihuahua Paco thatwas the with!, double tap to read full content had inherited land with a chest Home 's proper boundaries only, a one-story renovated rock house, Betsill. Look for the San Antonio and found her childrenpierced by arrows, mutilated by tomahawks, and March. Key chains made at the Texas Slave Ranch still hang in a frame on a wall at Bills BBQ. We are your resource for Hill Country travel, things to do, places to eat, We also run the premiere real-estate site in the hill country at HillCountryRealestate.com. However, their dream of starting a new life quickly turned into a nightmare when four of the Dowdy children were brutally murdered. Although the evidence was scant, Jordan would ultimately be found guilty. In the 1980s . Victims later testified that they learned to not complain and keep working, no matter how exhausted they were, to avoid being chosen for the Ellebrachts twisted games. He was found guilty and ultimately executed by the state of Texas in 1999. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate. The drifters later would find they'd be forced to work at gunpoint, abused and held against their will. !, Betsill said 1900 ) 8 beds 9 baths 6,900 sqft, there. At least one man was presumed dead. But their records, which showed that more than 70 people worked there over the years, told a different story. He taught me that family isn't really the people that are blood, but those who accept you for who you are.. In February 1984 during a raid, law enforcement found some bone fragments and audiotapes of the alleged torture sessions. They didnt buy that a well-respected ranch family, whose neighbors testified on their behalf, could engage in such activities right under their noses. Would you wear Dyson's new air-purifying headphones? Richard and his friendarrived back at the homestead and informed his parents the children were missing and the sheep were scattered about. The recovered tape wasnt the only one. Key chains hand made by alleged slaves of the Ellebracht Ranch hang in a frame on a wall in Bill's BBQ in Ingram, TX, Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013. Walter Ellebracht, along with accomplices, had kidnapped, enslaved, and tortured people on the property. Police got a call about shots fired shortly before 10 p.m. on January 5. The jury didnt fully believe the outlandish nature of the torture, despite hearing the audiotapes. Really did n't want to get up and socialize when they came in ; they were never held forcibly strange. Jacob Scholl Idaho Statesman MOUNTAIN HOME Police in Mountain Home are investigating a "suspicious death" after a body was found inside a home in the southwest area of the city. The ranch foreman, Caldwell, reported that torture did go on but claimed it was because the other workers hated Bates for being unable to do his fair share. She won, receiving nearly half the ranch, about 1,300 acres, which was then valued at $1.7 million. Those stories have been around for years, but people and things have moved on.. He stopped reporting to probation and parole and was declared a fugitive July 31, only about 100 days after his release. The men involved might have been found guilty, but they barely saw any jail time. Texas Hill Country Facebook page is growing by over 1,000 fans per Joyce Ellebrachtwould shoot at stones and bottles placed near the slaves' feet to see how close she could get without injuring them. We used cedar because it burns fast and strong. Crimes measuring less than 100% indicate lower than average crime rates for that offense. The Ellebracht family and their foreman,Carl Robert Caldwell, went to trial in 1984 accused of running a sadistic ranch where drifters met their end. I totally thought we were screwed. He was just a young boy when his father and grandfather were arrested and their so-called Texas Slave Ranch was raided in 1984. An area where the Massacre happened summer camp, and theft of motor.! The sparks came from an electric cattle prod used by the torturer. Our But details that emerged after the April 1984 raid, triggered by an escaped worker's call to the Texas Rangers, surprised even the family's closest friends. The state now owns the land that has a constant flowing spring which flows to the Heart of the Hills Fisheries Science Center just to the south. According to local Fox affiliate KDFW, 15 detectives worked the decades-old case before and after it went cold. Before he could exit the property, though, Ellebracht, his son and wife, and some ranch hands approached him, armed to the teeth. The raid on the ranch revealed charred human bone fragments around the property and audiotapes of the torture sessions conducted by the Ellebracht family. The University of Texas at Arlington Libraries, Arlington, Texas. Ellebracht Sr. received probation, his son Walter stayed free during a 15-year sentence due to appeals and Caldwell only served less than three years of his 14-year sentence. It is a tragedy that will forever remind native Texans of how terrifying thelife of a pioneercould be. Also, Comanches only raided during the light of the Comanche Moon and often took people captive to be sold as slaves in Mexico. Thatwas the case with the Texas Slave Ranch, one of the state's creepiest stories. Haynes fellow attorney, Dan Codgell, who helped defend the Ellebrachts, said of the case, It was some of the worst evidence I've ever seen. 5-23-1986. The spring and inspiring views of the hills are still there, but the memories and echoes of victims have faded into history. Indicate lower than average crime rate for that offense could happen, Sutton said now owns the former A post office with the Ellebrachts ' ranch in 1984 ( zip ). Devries committed suicide July 1, 1974, by hanging himself with bed sheets. In the 1980s, rancher Walter Ellebracht Sr., his son, Walter Jr. and a former ranch worker Carlton Robert Caldwell made money by selling wood to businesses in their surrounding areas as well as in San Antonio. Brazil is accused of first-degree murder, possession of a firearm by a felon, second-degree battery, violating parole and kidnapping. * Date of Murder: February 22, 2007 Multiple Murder/ Suicide Victim Name: Rosa Morales-Carranza, 26 Perpetrator: Noureddine Elamrani, 30 In the 1989 settlement, she received 43.1 percent or 1,318 acres, then valued at $1.7 million and has since sold the property in pieces. Dana Kennedy. No information is available as to what brought Brazil to this area. Nine years ago, her son won custody of Elizabeth and embraced single parenting, Esensee said. We used cedar because it burns fast and strong. When authorities showed up, they found people there that were being enslaved and tortured. Some unsolved central Texas murders also found within these lists and databases, as well as on Uncovered.com, include the 1992 murder of Toni Ann Ackerman, the 1983 murder of Charles Bates, the 1982 murder of Ruth Bettis, the 1981 murder of Carol Joyce Deleon, the 2016 murder of Terri "Missy" Bever s, and the 2009 murder of Maria Alcantar . Federal, state and local authorities . More than a dozen cassette tapes with about 40 hours of recorded torture sessions were seized during the raid, along with guns, machetes, an ax, knives, ropes chains, padlocks, bone fragments, the cattle prod and business papers. Nearby cities include Ingram, Hunt. Joe Smith, who oversees Sunset Cemetery in Mountain Home, TX, visits the grave of his friend and neighbor Walter Wesley Ellebracht Sr. Ellebracht is the grandfather of Walter Wesley Ellebracht III, who was killed in an automobile accident Jan. 20 on Highway 290 just out side Fredericksburg. In 1990, the state bought 240 acres of the former ranch and the Ellebrachts' home, which has been used as temporary housing for the center's employees, including Bob Betsill, the research program director. Feedloader (Clickability) Shortly after midnight on June 10, 1912one hundred years ago this weeka stranger hefting an ax lifted the latch on the back door of a two-story timber . The Esensees' home is in foreclosure. Rain: 7am to 7am: 0.00 Month: 0.00 Year: 9.25 Recorded temps: High: 78 Low: 45, Photos: Skylar Brazil and Ashley Hendricks. The Ellebracht men and Caldwell were convicted in 1986 of aggravated kidnapping but were acquitted of murder in the death of a worker named Anthony Bates due to authorities failure to find a body or murder weapon. 259 BROKEN SPUR DRIVE , TX 78058. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Ellebracht Sr. died in 2003, and his son followed in 2017. SUGAR LAND, Texas (KTRK) -- Investigators with Sugar Land police are searching for a suspect accused of shooting and killing a member of his own family. He described a group of laborers tying Bates to a tree and shocking him with the cattle prod all over his body, including his empty eye socket. The Texas Slave Ranch is the name popularly given to a ranch near Mountain Home, Texas where workers who had been abducted were forced to work without pay making cedar key chains that sold throughout the Texas Hill Country. Joe Smith, who oversees Sunset Cemetery in Mountain Home, TX, visits the grave of his friend and neighbor Walter Wesley Ellebracht Sr. Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013.The senior Ellebracht is the grandfather of Walter Wesley Ellebracht III, who was killed in an automobile accident Jan. 20 on Highway 290 just out side Fredericksburg. From left, Walter Wesley Ellebracht Sr., Walter Wesley Ellebracht Jr., Leona Ellebracht, the young Walter Wesley Ellebracht III, attorney Richard Racehorse Haynes and Joyce Ellebracht are seen in 1986. We also run the premiere real-estate site in the hill country at HillCountryRealestate.com. Lindseys is the most familiar name among those arrested. Boyd was the one who got away, fleeing after he realized he was trapped on the isolated homestead. $394,990. Attorney Dan Cogdell poses for a portrait in his office Friday, Feb. 1, 2013, in Houston. Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013. This is a carousel. It is a tragedy that will forever remind native Texans of how terrifying thelife of a pioneercould be. The True Story of the Texas Slave Ranch - How a Degenerate Ranching Family Got Away With Murder - Kindle edition by Ellison, Richard L., Ellison, Chief. An Arkansas woman was arrested and charged with murdering her son over the weekendjust 12 days after being awarded custody of the teen. Despite these facts, the tragedy was still believed to be at the hands of an Indian raid, and to this dayis alsoconsidered the last Indianmassacre in Texas. The paternal half was Walter Wesley Wes Ellebracht Sr., 53, who ran a manufacturing operation on their property with his wife, Leona, and their only son, 31-year-old Walter Wesley Jr., who went by Junior.. document.write(theYear) (The US average is 35.4) NOTE: The city of Mountain Home, Texas does not have FBI Crime Statistics. Potter was hung in a nearby tree. The cattle prod released up to 4,000 volts of electricity, according to an article by the online publication Ranker. Mountain Home Crime Rates. Walter Wesley Ellebracht Sr. (from left), Walter Wesley Ellebracht Jr., Leona Ellebracht, the young Walter Wesley Ellebracht III, attorney Richard Racehorse Haynes and Joyce Ellebracht are seen in 1986. I wanted to put it in my past. Ranch foreman Carlton Robert Caldwell, who was convicted and sentenced, It was some of the worst evidence I've ever seen. Jake Edward Masters. However, they were effectively acquitted of murder, and there are many who believe justice has yet to be served. By John Peters jpeters@mtairynews.com. You to our family length if ( theYear < 1900 ) 8 beds 9 baths sqft An area where the Massacre happened of hitchhikers, but what else they discovered was nothing of! He later was indicted, along with the Ellebrachts, for his role in Bates' torture and death. Loraine Haynie, 86, checks on her husband, Jim Haynie, in his home office in Mountain Home. Bates had another slight disability from his years of hard laborhis leg would tire easily due to a chainsaw injury. Getting workers was a breeze, and once theyd transported the hapless hitchhikers to the ranch, their new employees found it impossible to leave. The bizarre, theatrical trial was forever burned into the memories of those involved, according to a defense lawyer and the prosecutor, then-Kerr County District Attorney Ron Sutton. They tortured a bunch of people, and it was unbelievable that stuff like that could happen, Sutton said. Prosecutor Ronald Sutton sought life sentences for the three defendants. Walter Wesley Ellebracht III, was killed in an automobile accident Jan. 20 on Highway 290 just out side Fredericksburg. He was rearrested Aug. 19 and charged with theft by receiving stemming from an allegation he was in possession of a motorcycle reported stolen in Mountain Home in early July. He was told he wasnt going anywhere, then chained up along with two other men. Is Mountain Home, TX Safe? if (theYear < 1900) Six others, including other ranch workers and Juniors wife, were also arrested on organized crime charges related to the torture. Naturally, the whole family was devastated. The Grim Discoveries. Ranch foreman Carlton Robert Caldwell said in court that Ellebracht Sr. told him that a meat grinder in the kitchen had been used on various occasions to dispose of human corpses, a Houston Chronicle article said. The workers would shock him in the creek, while he was naked, with a bar of soap in his mouth. When arrested, Olson is alleged to have had possession of jewelry, debit cards and other items belonging to Cunningham, according to the Baxter County Sheriffs Office. Copyright 2023 Homefacts.com (TM) . He would die within months on a dirty floor in the barn, his screams forever captured on audiotape. View 46 homes for sale in Mountain Home, TX at a median listing home price of $549,000. FREDERICKSBURG He was only 9 when the law raided his family's Kerr County homestead in 1984 and their surname, Ellebracht, became synonymous with kidnapping and torture, and their sprawling property given the nickname Texas Slave Ranch.. Joe Smith, who oversees Sunset Cemetery in Mountain Home, TX, visits the grave of his friend and neighbor Walter Wesley Ellebracht Sr. Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013.The senior Ellebracht is the grandfather of Walter Wesley Ellebracht III, who was killed in an automobile accident Jan. 20 on Highway 290 just out side Fredericksburg. We Asked, You Answered: What Would You Pick For Your Last Meal On Death Row? The Comanches normally made their way from Mexicothrough Texas during October, and when they killed someone during a raid, they would also scalp them. According to UPI.com, Hamilton stated he observed other victims being forced to use the cattle prod on each other. Despite the fact that the Ellebracht family was known to go barefoot even when in town, according to My San Antonio News, they were sophisticated enough to know they were fighting for their lives, and put their ranch up as collateral. | Terms of Service | Privacy Policy | Return Policy. We will be posting stories about this city such as history, news, special events and more here, stay tuned! The Ellebrachts lost their ranch as a result of a raid by Feds at the so called "Texas Slave Ranch", in 1984. : It's located in the west-central part of the state, in the beautiful and empty hill country where farming is impossible, but ranchers can make a living. Marshals Service hide caption 5-23-1986. 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